Nairobi – 9 December 2020: Embakasi East MP Babu Owino and vocal politician Miguna Miguna have topped this year’s Google Search lists.
This is according to a list released by Google on ‘Year in Search’ lists for the year 2020.
Babu and Miguna are followed by Jubilee Secretary General Raphael Tuju, Joan Kubai, flamboyant daughter of a Kenyan politician was number three then Health CS Mutahi Kagwe followed at number four.
The Google lists are a compilation of all searches done in the year for countries in the world, including Kenya.
Data from Google Trends is used to build the top trending lists of searches. The lists are categorised into trending general searches, local and global personalities, deaths and health searches.
Other categories include trending movies and TV shows, sports, ‘how to’, and ‘what is’ searches.
Speaking during the event, Dorothy Ooko, Head of Communications and Public Affairs for Africa said, “The 2020 Year in Search lists not only reveal the most popular trends from the past 12 months, but also give insight into the biggest events in the news, politics, sports, entertainment and popular lockdown trends. As people continue to look for information in new and different ways, Google Search keeps evolving to make the world’s information accessible and useful to all.”
English Premier League and U.S. Elections were the number one and two trending Search queries respectively.
Kenyans admire football more than any other sport. Search queries on football clubs in English Premier League, Serie A, UEFA Champions League, Europa League, and La Liga dominated the Trends.
People searched to know the league standings, fixtures, and results of their favourite football clubs.
Kenyans keenly followed the US elections – comparing with their own and drew comical similarities between the two.
They searched for updates and results for both President Donald Trump and Democrat Presidential nominee, Joe Biden(now President-elect).
Kenyans also turned to Google Search for tips on how to stay safe and healthy amidst the pandemic.
They searched for coronavirus in Kenya, the latest statistics, symptoms, prevention measures, and vaccines.
Kenyans were also keen to know the reopening dates for schools, making it the fifth trending search query. There were conflicting reports about the reopening dates and which students would resume in-person classes. During this time, Kenyans relied on Search for the latest news on when schools would be reopening.
Below are the Trending Searches by Kenyans in 2020:
Top 10 Trending General Queries
- English Premier League
- US elections
- Thank you coronavirus helpers
- Coronavirus in Kenya
- Schools reopening in Kenya
- Tanzania coronavirus
- Boris Johnson
- Coronavirus in Italy
- Waiguru impeachment
- London marathon
Top 10 Trending Local Personalities
- Miguna Miguna
- Babu Owino
- Raphael Tuju
- Joan Kubai
- Mutahi Kagwe
- Oscar Sudi
- Mercy Mwangangi
- Willis Raburu
- Moses Kuria
- George Magoha
Top 10 Trending Global Personalities
- Joe Biden
- Kim Jong-Un
- Kamala Harris
- Boris Johnson
- Mike Oliver
- Prince Charles
- Felicien Kabuga
- John Magufuli
- Mikel Arteta
- Jack Ma
Top 10 Trending Losses
- Papa Shirandula
- Kobe Bryant
- Former President Daniel Moi
- Ken Walibora
- Kenny Rogers
- Chadwick Boseman
- Papa Dennis
- Naya Rivera
- George Floyd
- Tecra Muigai
Top 10 Trending Health Queries
- Coronavirus
- Quarantine
- Dexamethasone
- Pfizer
- Vitamin C
- KEMSA
- Chloroquine
- Asymptomatic
- Sanitiser
- Ventilator
Top 10 Trending Movies & TV Shows
- Money Heist
- Maria
- Ringo
- Extraction
- Contagion
- Blood and Water
- Nazar
- Raised by wolves
- The Witcher
- Cursed
Top 10 Trending Sports Queries
- English Premier League
- UEFA Champions League
- Serie A League
- Europa League
- La Liga
- Bruno Fernandes
- FA Cup
- NBA
- Willian Borges
- Kai Havertz
Top 10 Trending General “How to” Queries
- How to file nil returns
- How to open a pdf file
- How to check NHIF status
- How to write a report
- How to play chess
- How to style braids
- How to register a company in Kenya
- How to clear from CRB
- How to download music
- How to plant onions
Top 10 Trending Tech “How to” Queries
- How to fill Tpad online
- How to create a website
- How to connect a phone to TV
- How to make my electric plate cooker work
- How to take a screenshot on a laptop
- How to create a Paypal account
- How to open bin file
- How to create a YouTube channel
- How to save photos on Google
- How to create an email account
Top 10 Trending “What is” Queries
- What is coronavirus
- What is curfew
- What is happening in Nigeria
- What is Halloween
- What is fever
- What is BBI
- What is my IP
- What is entanglement
- What is hantavirus
- What is quarantine
